The Choclo is the national¹ composers competition for new tangodance music.
Choclo is the young corn, golden and full of life. It's the symbol for the lively tango culture in our country. It stands for the renewal we seek in new tangodancemusic.
El Choclo is the famous song by the legendary composer Ángel Gregorio Villoldo. His name reminds us about the roots of tango: dance music.
El Choclo could already be heard in Rotterdam in 1913 on the Limonaire-organ "The Spanish Lady".
El Choclo also was the name of the first Argentine tango orchestra in 
the Netherlands, founded in 1883 by Hub Mathijsen, in which both
Juan Tajes and the regretted Nanette Currie used to sing.
In 1983 Juan Tajes formed a duo with Piet Capello, and in 1985 they established Tango Cuatro with Carel Kraaijenhof, who in turn created Sexteto Canyengue with Leo Vervelde in 1989. Listen to the radio program De Wandelende Tak (in Dutch) about those early years of tango in The Netherlands.
The Choclo is an initiative by La Cadena, the magazine for Argentine tango in the Netherlands and Belgium. For over 16 years we promote and stimulate tango and with the Choclo initiative we bring a new impulse to this rich culture.
Many talented musicians live in the Netherlands. There are many orchestras and there is a tango-department at the Rotterdam conservatory.
Now, La Cadena challenges tango lovers to compose new tangodancemusic. In the tradition of the tango salon we ask composers to write one tanda of tango music. That means three or four songs, a total of 12 to 15 minutes of music. The tanda may consist of one or more of the three styles: tango, milonga and waltz.
The contributions to the Choclo will be judged by a wel-selected jury, that is oppointed by the editorial-board of La Cadena:
Leo Vervelde, bandoneonist and headteacher at Codarts. Jury chairman
Peter Corvo, internationally renowned tango-dj
Juan Pablo Dobal, pianist
Lalo Díaz, dancer/teacher/dj at Academia de tango
De winner of the Choclo will receive a trophy and a full day in a professional sound studio to record the compositions. The music will be freely available on this site for 6 months, for all the tangopublic in Holland and Belgium to enjoy.
¹ The Choclo is a competition for composers and musicians who live/work in the Netherlands and Belgium. See for detailed criteria Rules and regulations